Melia Las Antillas: Better than expected !

We spent 5 nights at Melia las Antillas and this was our first visit ever to Cuba. As such we had tempered our expectations of accommodations and food considerably so perhaps this contributed to our being relatively pleasantly surprised ! We paid the extra for Concierge level service which got us access to a lounge located on the top floor which came in handy in the mornings for early coffee and on the last day where we had a late flight out of Cuba; we were able to rest there in the comfort of  [... read more]Air Conditioning and with access to snacks ( limited in variety and quality ) and drinks. Our room had a very large and very comfortable bed facing a small balcony and a panoramic view of the sprawling resort. We asked for a sea view but the ocean was merely a sliver in the horizon. This resort accesses a wonderful beach but it is at least a 5-10 minute walk away depending on your stride. We travelled with friends and had similar evaluations of our amenities. Everything in our rooms worked - the bathroom had a smallish tub that had seen better days to be charitable but there were ample towels , including beach towels, and bathrobes in the room. The cupboard had a safe which we chose not to use and a bar fridge which was stocked daily with beer and soft drinks. On the second day a full size bottle of gin ( beefeater ), local rum and champagne were placed in the room along with a half a bottle of Chivas Regal ! A very large buffet was available for all meals - it would be more than ample for anyone to find something they could eat and all 4 of us found it actually to be a better option than most of the a la Carte restaurants. Servers are slow to respond to requests for the things that are served at the table and salt and pepper are almost non-existent. We all found the beef to be extremely tough whereas pork and chicken dishes were good. Fish was reasonably good but the prep station for it takes a long time. The only a la carte restaurant we liked was the one called "Romantico" - the food was "haute cuisine" and service very good. We thought the so called lobster-dinner was a farce - it consisted of 4 1/2 inch cross cut pieces of lobster with the shell and all in a tomato sauce of sorts. Everything is heavily salted during prep but no salt/pepper on the table. The resort is sort of "open" to the elements creating pleasant cross breezes most of the time - however : during the rains the hallways become flooded and create a danger for slipping. I probably would list this issue as being the main reason I wouldn't return unless they fix it at some point. Evening entertainment is available on two different terraces every night - we enjoyed it very much.The elevator worked most of the time but there were the odd outages which also affected water flow - though very briefly. One can exchange money at a premium in the hotel and there is also a tuck shop selling the usual holiday stuff as well as some Cuban items - all at a premium. Mostly we found staff to be extremely friendly but for this size of place I suppose there will always be the odd one who snaps or is less than service minded. Inexcusably, though, I found the Sunwing representatives to be extremely impolite and usually unavailable ! Nowhere to be found ! The so called briefing is a complete waste of time and on the last day I particularly was unable to get important departure and pick up information as the binder was missing all together. Do make the time to get off the resort - we arranged our own tours to Havana, Trinidad and into Vardero as well and enjoyed every bit !

Melia Las Dunas: Awesome staff and resort!!!

Had a wonderful week with perfect weather at the Melia Las Dunas resort. Took tennis lessons every morning and enjoyed one of the most stunning beaches I've ever been to. The staff was friendly and always greeted us with a genuine smile!

Sol Rio de Luna y Mares: Was better than we remember!

Hotel was great. Nice touches added. The beach was as beautiful as we remember. Food, great! Very relaxing. We enjoyed the excursions that are offered by the hotel. The hike up the mountain was superb. The only downside was the rebate card I received from my package. It was for $40 cash card, redeemable at certain service centers, like Valet parking. I never take that, but said why not? it was the same price as regular parking, if you included the cash card. Well, low and behold, when I went to [... read more] pay, they did not accept the card, so it cost $40 more. Not a great way to end the trip. Luna Y Mares, very nice, everything we wanted.

Melia Jardines del Rey: Amazing resort for celebration

It was a big surprize. went through on customer reviews and prepared for negatives. Emailed our requests and received response almost immediately. MJDR was the third on our list originally but luckily we made this decision. Extremely friendly staff, wide varieties of good food, gorgeous rooms especially with ocean view on top floor. No issues at all but bring water sues, mosquito spray and a small flashlight. Thanks for everything!

Sol Cayo Coco: Great resort

The hotel is dated but clean and staff very friendly they helped us with information regarding things to do and where to eat off the resort We will return had a awesome time and the weather was amazing

Melia Jardines del Rey: Pretty good

This hotel was good.We enjoyed our stay. The staff were good always willing to help you.Pool areas were lovely .The food was pretty good for Cuba. How ever make sure you lock up ALL valuables we had a bottle of perfume that went missing,so that was upsetting.And bug repellant is a must. Even though we had it we still got hundreds of bites. They need to do something about the bugs ,spray at dusk or something.We noticed that they strayed in the early morning about 6am but the main problem was even [... read more]ings. The entertainment was Great!!!! every night there was something new going on.Just we couldn't stay out to late due to the bites.

Paradisus Punta Cana: Nice resort.

The grounds are beautiful and vast with flowers, trees, lights and music at night. The room are comfortable and big. The cleaning services are a bit inconsistant: no face and hand cloths after the first day, 4 towels one day, 1 the next. Shampoo and soap were replenish only once. The beach is amazing:nice sand,no shell or rock. The pool is nice but not very big compared with other resorts. We weren't Royal so we didn't have access to the other pool. The big disappointment was the restaurant rese [... read more]rvations. Although it was saying unlimited a la carte dinners on the Trip Central website, they were giving us only 4 out of 7. That is something that I always check before choosing the resort. The rest of the time,we were supposed to go to the buffet which was not very good. My husband complained and they gave us another reservation to the Buffet in the Royal part which was better. The a la carte restaurants were mostly good, depending on what you order. There is no sport bar with pool tables which we really like to spend time usually. The ping pong tables are outside and damaged. There are bicycles everywhere which is nice and shuttle trains to go around the resort. 30 minutes from the airport with direct transfer. No snorkeling (no reefs) in front of the resort.

Melia Las Dunas: Great resort

Very nice hotel. Exceed our expectations. We had an amazing time there Pros: Beautiful grounds, nice food. Amazing beach. Good choice of alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks. Cons: Entertainment could've be better.

Melia Las Dunas: the hotel iz not at the level of a 4 star.

Rooms ae not clean and towels dirty upholstery linen towels. Kitchen and bar OK ,waiters and chefs and statt that works at the bar are super helpful and friendly. The beach is clean water is clean only was jellyfish but we could not swim in the ocean and we do not like swimming in the pool.

Sol Rio de Luna y Mares: What a wonderful HOLIDAY!!!

Me and my husband stayed for 11 nights in Sol Rio de Luna y Mares (Play Esmiralda) and we had the best time of our life! The resort complex is sitting on top of a small hill and it gives a stunning view of the surrounding area – you can see the ocean while drinking coffee in the main restaurant. The beach is just fantastic, white, fine sand extending right into the water, the beach is wide and covered by many palm trees, offer nice shade. Lots of activities on the beach: volleyball, paddle bo [... read more]ats, single and double kayaks, sail boats, snorkeling. The hotel stuff is very friendly and helpful. Food is very good.  And don’t miss their night shows, they are sparkling and genuine, spiced with hot Cuban flavor. I also recommend  to have walk on their forest trail with a fantastic view point at the end (3 cuc per person). I am looking forward to spend my next vacation in this resort, given the opportunity!  Wish you all a fantastic vacation like we had!!!

Melia Las Antillas: Amazing staff! Great resort with really good food

We just spent a wonderful 2 weeks (April 30-May 14) at Melia Las Antillas. All staff were amazing and couldn't do enough for you. It is obvious they love their jobs and we heard many say so. Tons of staff around from cleaners to management and any would gladly help if you had questions. Service was awesome wherever we went. Drinks were good anywhere. Love the 24h lobby bar. But odd the pool bar was well stocked during the day but removed a lot of varieties at night (open to midnight). Food was r [... read more]eally good for Cuban standards and plentiful. The buffet offered a good variety (including thin crust pizza) and mussels, crab legs, octopus, squid, fish, chicken, pork, etc. etc. and all the sides. But people complain about the AC. Well let me just say if people (visitors) would close the doors behind them then maybe it would have a chance to cool down more. The beach was obviously beautiful but no bathrooms near it so you had to walk back to the pool. The beach bar was great and the grill next to it were awesome. The pool was lots of fun with activities and games, but never overpowering if you wanted to just lay back and chill. The 2 resident sharks in their own pool/pond between the resort and pool were fun to feed and watch (but watch your fingers!). Yes, it had a sulfur smell near where the 4 pillars fed water into the pond, but not always offensive. The resort itself is in slight need of some TLC. But still a great resort and very clean with staff constantly around cleaning, fixing, painting, etc. It is an older building so to be expected. Our room was just OK but we booked a supersaver room so didn't have high expectations. The king bed was firm but very comfy. AC and fridge didn't work well at all but we managed just fine. After talking to others our issues were uncommon as theirs all worked great. We didn't let that spoil our vacation. We intended to venture off the resort into Varadero (I had been before and wanted to go back and introduce my boyfriend to it) but in the end we didn't, we fell into total lazy vacation mode. Except one morning we walked down the street and watched some of the dolphin show from a bridge. The Dolphinarium was within walking distance from the resort. Walking back to our resort we saw 2 camels in a field in front of our resort. Unusual to see but so cool. They have Cuba Day every Saturday on the lawn area and the food was awesome. They shut down the pool grill and buffet (except for the pizza oven). The grind sugarcane in front of you, roasted a pig on a spigot, had grilled lobster, ham, hamburgers, rice, fruit, delicious deserts, breads, and MUCH more. Plus music and entertainment. An awesome afternoon of food, drinks and fun. We were thoroughly impressed with this resort and hope to return again.

Hotel Camino del Mar: Great Getaway

Loved the resort and the beach was amazing. The only real negatives were the rooms could use some updating but everything worked great and most of the staff were great and very accommodating and helpful.

Sol Cayo Santa Maria: I have low standards, too close to unacceptable

It took some time for me to write a review because i was so disgruntled. Went to Sol Cayo April 30th/16 Travelling alone tends to make a person more tolerable of a bad situation. I made the best of a very poor quality resort. Very poor to no lighting at all for the exterior of the building and no lighting to find my room at 12:30am upon arrival made for an interesting first night. There is condemned out of order bathrooms at the pool area and pool bridge railings that were rotted off completely, [... read more] path ways to the beach roped off because the wood is so rotten there are full sections missing, the path ways that are open have rotten boards that are loose with nail heads sticking up lord help anyone with kids that are excited to get to the beach it is trouble waiting to happen, these are just a few indications of how in dire need of repair all of this resort is. The "night life" is non-existent except for the wild life lol. They advertise the Sol Melia and Sol Cayo as being adjoining properties but if you try and go through the open arch way to the sister property you will probably be met by a guard telling you that your not allowed, go around in behind the buildings or out the road way to the front entrance and through the lobby. Running out of ice at the pool bar for more than half a day not just a few minutes or an hour when the place is at maybe 25% capacity, really! Food was good for the most part, but when you change an a la carte dining location the signage should be changed also or you end up in the middle of another "out of order" area where there used to be a restaurant, easy enough to ask just an added proverbial thorn. Beach was enjoyable and good food there. You get what you pay for, a place to sleep which was actually a very good room, sun was bright water was wet and beach was sandy ;-)

Melia Cayo Santa Maria: Overall a nice relaxing time!

Overall we got what we wanted which was a lovely beach to relax on. Things we did not like is that the breakfast hours were from 7:30-10. Which meant we could not sleep in as the other food facilities did not serve breakfast foods. As well, the hotel is more of a 2.5-3 star hotels. It needs upgrading. Linen and towels were stained and old. Food was ok. most of the staff was friendly. Some not so much. We did pay a bit more that he value we received.

Memories Cayo Largo: The most beautiful beaches I have ever seen

The hotel is showing its age but the workers are doing everything to keep it up. If you are a stickler for details you might be disappointed. For me all the little small things did not change a thing. I had the best vacation ever. The staff are all great, I wish I had asked the name of the young lady at the desk because she went way out of her way to make sure we got the ideal room. My wife has mobility issues and I did not make a request for special treatment but our concerns were addressed wit [... read more]hout saying a word. People talk about "Cuban food" anyone who has been to Cuba does not expect a lot, that being said I have been to the islands 9 times and this was the best Cuban food I ever had. I would like to mention that the manager of the Ranchon restaurant needs to be retrained in how to treat guests. We made a simple mistake and he berated us like we were bad children. We had three beds in our room, two of the matresses were hard but the third one was just fine. The water was not running for a day, we expected this as I had read about it in another review. We were given a gallon of spring water to clean up with. For me the few hours with no running water was no problem at all. Understand this is an Island with limited water resources. Also every hotel on the island was affected by this lack of water. You can walk more than 3 kilometers on the beach, I did this every day. Bring water and extra sunscreen. I read a lot of reviews and I remarked that a LOT of the reviewers had been to this hotel many times, some as many as 15 times. We met a couple that have been coming from England for decades. Even with the small problems I hope I can go back again and again. I just loved my visit.

Sol Palmeras: Great Resort for a Great Experience!!

The hotel and resort are a pleasure from start to finish. The lobby has a beautiful layout and decorations that draw you in until you reach the magnificent beach. The rooms are cozy are clean and the accommodations are well thought-out. The staff is very friendly and personable to create a comfortable environment for everyone. The resort has a wide variety in activities and restaurants to keep you well entertained and fed throughout your entire stay. There is plenty of room by the pools and beac [... read more]h to sit back and enjoy a nice cold drink from the bar!

Paradisus Rio De Oro: Incredible Resort!

We had an amazing time at Paradisus Rio De Oro. If I could, I would give it 6 stars. The service was friendly, fast and genuine. The food was delicious; the buffet had a lot of variety, we could have eaten there all week, though the a la cartes were also exquisite. The beach was perfect. We didn't spend a lot of time at the pool, but it was clean and looked very relaxing. Our room was in great shape and very comfortable. The cleaning service is very efficient. In general the resort was very quie [... read more]t, being an adult only resort, which was very nice. What I liked most about the experience was the freedom to make our day as full or as lazy as we desired. We would definitely go back and plan on it in a couple of years! Thanks very much!!

Melia Las Dunas: Amazing resort and breath taking Beach

The hotel was better than I expected, beautiful grounds well maintained. Very polite staff, Randy was great with the activities at the pool. Food was better than we expected the A la carte restaurants are a must. The most beautiful beach and crystal blue water I have every seen. Enjoy my post May 7 - 14

Tryp Cayo Coco: Pro: Beach, Staff, Activities! Cons: Rooms

If you want to have a great beach vacation, go here. If you want to sleep in your room, go somewhere else. Great atmosphere, non stuffy, good food, great dancing! Fave out of 3 other hotels (colonial, flamenco, pestana) in Cayo Coco!

Melia Varadero: worth every penny !

absolutely blown away. 15 years of travel and we can honestly say best resort we have stayed at. the grounds are colourful and clean. the staff went out of there way to make sure you are takin care of. plenty of places to eat threw out the day with a great variety of food. there was something going on everyday on the grounds like a cuban day bbq party to a white party at night with amazing entertainment. the beach has some erosion issues with the sand but its no big deal it just looks strange at [... read more] first but its an amazing beach with fun and sun and a server bringing you drinks . awesome. the only thing that was a little disapointing was the disco. there was to much of a gap between nightly show and the disco opening up. you want to keep the energy going but the wait time kinda makes ya wanna call it a night. and more international music is a must for international tourists. but thats my thoughts on the matter. this little issue would not keep me from returning. this resort is very well laid out .incredible staff and just a fun beautiful resort to stay on. i would recomend this resort to anyone wanting to go to varadero. remember the name MELIA VARADERO. put this one on your list of places to go. cheers. cant wait to come back.